Valve.



vP. A. MERRILL L J. S. G. NIGHOLLS.

VALVE.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 25,1910.

9'?9,532, Patented Dec. 27, 1910.

FRANK A. MERRILL, OF MALDEN, AND TOI-IN S. C. NIGHOLLS, OF BSTON, MASSACHU- SETTS, ASSIG-NGRS 0F ONE-THIRD T0 WILLIAM Gr. MERRILL, OF MALDEN, MASSA- CHUSETTS.

VALVE.

erases.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRANK A. MERRILL, of Malden, in the county of Middlesex and Commonwealth of h/iassachusetts, and JOHN S. C. NIorroLLs, of Boston, in the county of Sutl'olk and said Commonwealth, both citizens of the United States, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Valves, of which the following is a specilication.

In all three-way valves ot which we have any knowledge, there is always a liability ot their binding and refusing to open or close whenever used in connection with hot fluids. The object of this invention is the construction of a. multi-way valve which shall be free from any such contingency, and which shall, in addition, be capable of tight closure and immunity from leakage no matter what the conditions ot temperature may be.

Referring to the drawings forming part of this specilication, Figure 1 is an elevation, partly sectional, of a three-way valve made in accordance with ourinvention. F ig. 2 is a plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a plan View of a multi-way valve made in accordance with our invention.

The numeral 1 designates a supply pipe from which extend branches 2 and 3; the purpose of the valve being to enable either' one or the other of said branches to be opened or closed; the closure of one acting to open the other, and vice versa. The complete three-way valve comprises a single body having two valve-members 1 so coupled together to a single operating wheel 5 as to enable said members to be simultaneously but oppositely shifted by a turn of said wheel.

Each valve-member consists of a tapered plug or gate 6 vertically movable between the ports 7 and S, so that when it is lowered into engagement with both ports, the latter are thereby tightly closed; while its elevation opens said ports and permits the passage ot' fluids from the main supply pipe 1 to the branch pipe Q or 3 controlled by such gate. Each plug or gate is internally threaded and receives the lower end of a screw 9 which is held against longitudinal displacement by a shoulder 10, whereby the rotation of such screw raises or lowers the gate as desired, it being kept from turning with said screw by means of splines 11 engaging corresponding splines on the inner Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led May 25, 1910.

Patented Dec. 2'?, 1910. Serial No. 563,307.

surface of the valve chamber. To simultaneously but oppositely revolve said screws, a spindle 12 is located midway thereof and parallel therewith, its lower end being given a bearing in a boss 13 projecting from the main body of the valve, and its upper section being given a bearing in a cross bar lil, the latter being held by the outer parts ot' said screws. Fixed on this spindle is a spur gear 15 positioned a short distance below the hand wheel 5; and ixed on said screws 9 and meshing with said spur gear, are other spur gears 16. Said screws being one left-handed and the other right-handed, as shown in Fig. 1, the action of the gear 15 will be to turn the other gears in opposite directions, and consequently to screw one plug or gate up and the other down, thereby simultaneously opening one and closing the other. As there is but one limitrtor the rotation of the hand wheel in either directioin--the limit given by the closure o1 a gate, the same can be closed as tightly as needed.

To render the gears light and inexpensive, they are made quite thin, and provided with guard-disks 2() lined to the outer faces of certain thereoi, as shown in F ig. 1, which illustrates the gears 16 as the ones thus arranged, while the gear 15 enters between such disks into 4its mesh with the gears 16.Y

This permits said gears to be quite thin, and yet in no danger of slipping laterally ont of mesh with each other.

Fig. 3 sets forth substantially the same construction applied to a multi-way valve provided with several branch pipes 17 each of the latter having a gate, screw and spur gear 16 like those above described. The centrally located hand wheel has its gear 15 adapted to mesh with all said gears 16, and can thereby rotate all said screws simultaneously and raise or lower their associated gates. By having one or more of the screws right handed and the others left handed, one motion of the hand wheel will operate the valve-gates as desired.

What we claim as our invention and for which we desire Letters Patent is as follows, to wit g* 1. A body containing a plurality of valves, a hand-wheel, a toothed wheel connected with said hand wheel to rotate rigidly therewith, a toothed wheel for each of said valves meshing with the first named gear wheel, and a screw connected with each or" the lastnamed gears to operate therewith and operl ate its associated valve; certain of said screws being of a right hand pitch and others of a left hand pitch, whereby the turning of said hand wheel will open certain of the valves and close the others.

2. A body containing two valve chambers each having a valve-gate therein, a right handed screw engaging one of said gates and a left handed screw engaging the other gate, both screws having stems projecting to the exterior of the valve-chambers, a spur gear fixed on the outer end of each of said stems, a spindle located midway between and parallel with said screws, a spur gear Xed on said spindle and meshing with the firstnained gears, a hand-wheel iXed on said spindle, and a cross bar having its ends held by said screw-stexns and having a bearing at ,its inidlength for said spindle, said body7 being formed with a boss rotatably receiving the inner end of said spindle.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing invention, we have hereunto set our hands this 16th day of May, 1910.

FRANK A. MERRILL. JOHN S. C. NICHOLLS. Witnesses:

J. WATSON TAYLOR, Jr., S. B. UPHAM. 

